Bacon, sausages, eggs, tomatoes, mushrooms, toast, and beans all on one plate: is a Full English breakfast the most ultimate breakfast ever?
Confession: I’ve never had a real full English. At least not in England or anywhere in world in fact, except right here, at home. But a couple of weeks ago, Mike and I were chatting with a dude that moved here from England and the thing he said he missed the most was breakfast, specifically a Full English breakfast. He waxed poetic about the deliciousness for a good five minutes, but I wasn’t sold. Mike was nodding along, agreeing with him because he’s eaten many a full English in London, but me? Nope.
I really wasn’t interested until Mike showed me a photo a couple days later. It was a giant plate and it looked AMAZING. I mean, it might have been because I was very hungry, but at the time, nothing looked better to my eyes. Thus started the Full English Obsession. Mike and I took a casual look around town to see what ingredients we could find and here’s what we came up with!
What is a full English breakfast?
Sometimes called a fry up, a full English is a hearty, hefty breakfast plate served in the UK and Ireland. Full English breakfasts are so popular that they’re pretty much offered throughout the day as all-day breakfast. Full English breakfasts contain: sausages, back bacon, eggs, tomatoes, mushrooms, fried bread, and beans.
According to the internet, full English breakfasts need:
- Sausages – I think everyone just goes with whatever sausages they like, but sometimes there are 2-3 kinds on a plate. We went with regular breakfast sausages and we also got a bit of black pudding, which seems like most people insist on having as well.
- Back Bacon – This isn’t your regular bacon, which is made from pork belly, nope, back bacon is bacon that includes a little bit of the loin, kinda like a super thin pork chop but smoked. From what I can see, this kind of bacon isn’t really crispy.
- Eggs – Pretty straight forward, all the full English plates I’ve seen have sunny side up eggs.
- Tomatoes – These guys are cut in half along the equator and then seared in the pan and seasoned with salt and pepper. They aren’t really cooked, just given a little bit of color.
- Mushrooms – Seems like a take or leave it item, but we’re going all out here so of course mushrooms are needed. They’re cooked in the usual way, nicely browned and caramelized
- Toast – Don’t call it toast because I’ve seen some internet fights break out about the bread. You can’t just use a toaster and call it a day. The bread has to be FRIED, either with butter or oil.
- Beans – You have to have beans! I mean, I’ve never really had beans at breakfast, but it’s classic. We went for Heinz because that’s what they do in England and because their teal cans are too cute.
How to make a full English Breakfast
It takes a bit of juggling and two pans, because making a full English is mostly about multitasking. You can do it!
- Warm the beans. Open the can of beans and warm in a small pot over low heat, stirring occasionally.
- Cook the sausages and bacon. While the beans are warming, cook the sausages over medium to medium low, until browned and cooked through, turning as needed. Push the sausages to one side and add the bacon and fry, flipping as needed.
- If you’re having black pudding, add it to the pan and fry, flipping once. Keep everything warm in the pan over a low flame.
- Cook the mushrooms and tomatoes. In another pan, sear the mushrooms until brown and caramelized. Move to one side. Add the tomatoes, cut side down and sear.
- Fry the bread and cook the eggs. Move the meats from the pan and fry the bread in the drippings until golden and crisp. Cook the eggs in the pan that the mushrooms and tomatoes were in.
- Plate and enjoy! Scoop the beans in the middle of the plate then add the bacon at 1-2 o’clock, add the sausages at 3 o’clock, then the eggs at 6. If you have blood pudding, pop that on at 8 o’clock and then fill the rest of the plate with the tomatoes at 11 o’clock and the mushrooms at 12. Fried bread can get tucked in wherever or placed on a side plate. Enjoy!
Ingredients
- Sausages. Chose good sausages, preferably ones that are from your local butcher instead of supermarket sausages. Go for a fresh coarse ground pork sausage that’s seasoned simply. In the UK the sausages of choice are usually coarse ground Cumberland or Lincolnshire sausages.
- Black pudding. Not an absolute necessity but black pudding is super common and for black pudding lovers it’s a hill they will die on. You can get this when you’re buying sausages at your butcher. If they don’t have black pudding, ask for blood sausage.
- English Bacon. The bacon in the UK is not the bacon we know in North America. Back bacon is made from pork loin with a bit of belly. It’s the same cut pork chops, but thinner and smoked. Again, you can usually get this a good butcher.
- Eggs. All the eggs I’ve ever seen in a full English are sunny side up but you can go wild and cook them how you like. I don’t think the English breakfast police will come after you ;)
- Tomatoes. Classic field tomatoes, not romas, not cherry, not anything super fancy.
- Mushrooms. Simple brown (or cremini) mushrooms, halved.
- Fried bread. Thick cut bread fried in a pan with oil or drippings and never toasted. I think a standard supermarket white loaf is what’s needed, not a sourdough or country loaf. Definitely not brown!
- Beans. They’ve got to be Heinz!
Potatoes/hashbrowns
Any sort of potato is frowned upon on a full English. They’re seen as filler. If you even think of putting fries on, someone might get stabbed. You could do bubble and squeak (potatoes and cabbage mixed together and fried) but even then, some people are going to come after you.
Do they serve hash browns with Full English breakfasts?
Some people serve hash browns with a full English and some people think it is sacrilegious. Hash browns are more modern addition and that’s why they are so contentious. When you do see hash browns on a full English, they typically tend to be the triangle frozen variety as opposed to home made shredded potatoes. If you want a potato product that isn’t hash browns, bubble and squeak (fried potatoes and cabbage) is probably much more traditional.
Which kind of baked beans?
British baked beans are absolutely a key part of a full English. British style beans are made with beans and a tomato sauce seasoned with carrots, celery and Worcestershire. American style Southern baked beans are usually cooked with bacon and brown sugar, with a much more thick sauce. Go for British style Heinz baked beans. A reader suggested Branston Baked Beans. We haven’t tried them but they’re spoken of very highly on the internet!
What to serve with a full English breakfast
Coffee or tea! Tea is traditionally English but coffee is perfectly acceptable too. Add milk, sugar, and/or cream based on personal preference.
We made this on a snowy morning and it was perfect! Lots of hot tea, big fluffy flakes falling down outside, and ALL the fried bread. But, to be honest, I’m not sure if I’m a huge fan. Call me a savage, but I think I love regular breakfast more. Mike on the other hand, LOVED it! He said it was as good as the full English breakfasts he had while he was in London. Me on the other hand? I didn’t eat for the rest of the day and went into a food coma – I was definitely full!
Happy breakfasting!
-Steph
How to Make a Full English Breakfast
Ingredients
- 1 can beans Heinz preferred
- 4 links sausages breakfast sausage preferred
- 4 slices back bacon or Irish bacon
- 4 slices black pudding optional... some say
- 1 cup mushrooms halved or sliced
- 2 small tomatoes halved
- 4 slices bread
- 4 eggs
Instructions
- Heat up the beans over low in a small pot. Keep warm on low.
- Cook the sausages over medium to medium low heat, turning occasionally, until brown and cooked through. In the same pan, cook the bacon, flipping as needed. Fry the blood pudding slices over medium heat for 3-4 minutes per side.
- In another pan, heat up a bit of oil and cook the mushrooms, without moving, until brown and caramelized. Remove from the pan, then sear the cut side of the tomato briefly. Remove from the pan, season everything with salt and pepper.
- Wipe the pan down and heat up a bit of oil or butter over medium heat. Fry the bread until golden, flipping and adding more oil or butter as needed. Remove and set aside. Finally, fry the eggs to your liking. Plate everything up: sausages, bacon, black pudding, mushrooms, tomato, bread, and eggs. Enjoy immediately!
As far as I am concerned, the Full English breakfast is the finest meal in existence! My ingredients for the perfect FE start with sausages, I like 3 on the plate, all local butcher made, a Cumberland, a Lincolnshire and a Tomato sausage (all thick sausages). Bacon is back bacon, preferably unsmoked, and must NOT be the stuff with water in it, white patches on the bacon looks so unappetising. Black pudding, (blood sausage,blotwurst) also local butcher made, Scottish BP is an excellent alternative. Eggs must be really fresh with dark yolks. Mushrooms are white or chestnut. Tomatoes fresh and fried or grilled. Baked beans, I prefer Branston, more flavour in them, but must be served in a ramekin on the side to keep all the juice off the other ingredients. Fried white bread. Definitely NOT hash browns! If you must have potatoes have some Bubble and Squeek, or my favourite sauted potatoes with onion. English Breakfast tea on the side, if you have any room left, some toast and marmalade or honey.
The greatest English contribution to the culinary arts is baked beans for breakfast. While they are superb in the Full English, they are even better as a side for Eggs Benedict.
Don’t look at me like that…at least, not until you’ve tried it.
A few thoughts
1. There are solid places for a Full English in the USA – most brit pubs do this of special mention is the Bulls head in Lititz PA (https://lititzspringsinnandspa.com/?page_id=466)
2. Getting the right Breakfast meat is critical – both Parkers and Jolly posh do a good job, but if you are in the New York area the Butchers Fancy in Yonkers has the best sausage, bacon, black and white pudding. Just to prove its also a full Irish Breakfast
3. Fried bread is wonderful, but you insist on a Toast desert… then it has to be with marmalade
Enjoy
I’ve had a huge breakfast one time at the Royal Seaman’s club in Liverpool and for years I tried to replicate it. I forgot about it but was reminded of it while watching a series called “Lewis.” It was served and was call a “Full English.” My mouth watered, and the next day I went out and found most of the stuff after checking the Internet for what was in it. I’ve had it every day, only not in huge portions as some pictures suggest. It really doesn’t take that long to make, and holds me over till supper. I could never understand why people think British food is so bland, maybe because it’s the best kept secret.
Doing a big breakfast with some different than the typical items is nice. A breakfast dinner is nice too.
I travelled in the 90s in England we did bed and breakfast every day we travelled living on an English breakfast they were the best and It kept me norished all day tell dinner time and I lost weight as well!! We were always served eggs bacon baked beans tomatoes fried potatoes cubes and buttered toast some were better than other B&Bs. I came across your blog as was craving an English breakfast but I had it for dinner and thoroughly enjoyed it 😋 not something I could eat everyday now through
Northwest UK, I do a “Full English” every Sunday morning/Brunch helps with the recovery from Saturday night booze.
I do Bacon, sausage, blackpudding & mushrooms in a large griddle pan in the oven for 20mins, after 10mins fry the bread then in the last 5mins Micro the beans, Fried the egg, toast in the toaster & kettle on for a brew.
Afterwards slump in a comfy chair & Read the Sunday papers.
Well done
Friend and I went to England years ago, a week in London then a week in a rental car around the South. We stayed at a few bed&breakfasts and the people were charming and all would ask “Continental or English breakfast?” If you said Continental they would bring you hotel lobby fare: juice, toast, cereal. And look sad. If you said English breakfast, their faces lit up and there would be a ruckus in the kitchen and the above described feast would be brought out and they would sit and chat about your trip and it was wonderful. Always ask for the fun option.
I’m 83, lived in the UK all my life, worked in the UK, except for the occasional job abroad, all my life.
As you might guess I’ve eaten many full english breakfasts in my time. Home cooked, BnB cooked, hotel cooked, greasy spoon cafe cooked. This recipe is what most english people would consider the standard full english breakfast so in that respect is perfect.
I would, however, just like to make a comment about toast or fried bread.
In my opinion you should have one slice of fried bread on the plate (halved diagonally) and a couple of slices of toasted bread on the side. Any of the toasted bread not eaten with the fry up is then eaten with some thick cut marmalade ( not that pale thin/shreaded stuff) and a strong cup of coffee.
Perfect